Murderer and Eric Clapton drummer dies at 77
Jim Gordon, an infamous session drummer from the ‘60s and ‘70s, has passed away at the age of 77.
Gordon, who in his prime played with the likes of the Beach Boys and George Harrison, died in a psychiatric prison in California’s Vacaville. He had been sentenced to 16 years to life after killing his mother during a psychotic episode in 1983, and it is reported that he never attended parole hearings, or ever left prison.
His publicist Bob Merlis confirmed the news in a statement, where he also explained that Gordon had died of natural causes.
Gordon was born and raised in Los Angeles, and opted to pursue a career as a drummer while a teenager, even turning down a scholarship to UCLA. At just 17, he toured the United Kingdom with the Everly Brothers.
His professional resume only grew from there, with Gordon going on to become on the primary drummers for George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass. Additionally, he contributed to songs by The Beach Boys on Pet Sounds, Cher, Nancy Sinatra, Judy Collins, and Bobby Darin.
In 1970, he formed a group - Derek and the Dominos - with Eric Clapton. Together they wrote the hit ‘Layla’, with Gordon playing both piano and drums. Gordon’s girlfriend at the time, Rita singer Coolidge, claimed she had written the piano section.
Gordon’s relationship with Coolidge ended when he physically assaulted her.
As the years went by, Gordon developed issues with addiction, telling Rolling Stone in 1985 that he considered himself to be an alcoholic, and admitted to using heroin. By the late ‘70s, after he had confessed to hearing voices in his head, his mother had requested he seek help.
“He used to talk to me about hearing voices,” Bobby Whitlock informed Rolling Stone in 2013, “but I told him that it was his consciousness speaking to him. He said it was someone else. Evidently he never stopped or even lightened up on his drug and alcohol intake.
“The end result was the destruction of his family.”
As Gordon’s mental health deteriorated, so did his career. He claimed to often hear his mum’s voice, and despite a number of medical interventions, he never maintained a consistent treatment schedule.
And in June 1983, his mother paid the price, when Gordon fatally struck the 71-year-old Osa Marie Gordon with a hammer and knife.
In the wake of her murder, Gordon was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and sentenced to his 16-years-to-life in prison. In 2018, he was deemed to still pose “an unreasonable risk of threat to public safety.”
However, those who had known and worked with Gordon before the dark period of his life wanted to pay tribute to the late drummer, taking to social media to write of his professional success, citing some of his greatest hits and collaboration.
Gordon’s publicist, Eric Alper, did so while confirming the news, adding that he “will be missed.”
Eric Clapton’s ex-wife - Pattie Boyd - to whom he was married 10 years, paid her respects with a throwback picture of Gordon at a drum kit, writing that she was “sorry to hear of the passing of Jim Gordon.”
Images: Twitter, Getty